Home is where the pub is. At least it could be if you have £4million to spare.
Grade II listed medieval mansion The Moat House in Benenden, Kent is on the market, offering buyers their own car museum, moat and pub.
Boasting more than 100 acres of land in the heart of the Garden of England, the 15th century country house has been put up for sale by estate agents Knight Frank.
The Moat House is ringed by an actual moat, complete with its own stone bridge crossing into the 15th century manor. Set in the heart of the Kent countryside the sprawling country manor boats 110-acres of land, which was William the Conqueror once gifted to his brother, Odo after the invasion of 1066
This hand painted trompe-l’oeil ceiling in the mansion’s dining room is inspired by features from around the ground, the technique is designed to give a piece a 3D effect. This dining room is one of four reception rooms inside the 7,274sq ft main house
A car museum within the country manor has all manor of period cars, the walls are adorned with paintings of Benenden and neighbouring Kent villages. There’s even a traditional pub inside, The Plough Inn, where owners can go for a pint or entertain visitors after a tour around the museum
Inside and out, the manor offers all sorts of features, whether that be a fishing pond (left) or period wooden beams to remind owners of the £4million Benenden home’s history. Elsewhere in the grounds there are outbuildings, and walled-off box gardens, while antique ceiling beams and grand fireplaces are a staple of the home’s interior
Striking photos show off the manor’s nine bedrooms and a dining room with a unique, hand painted trompe-l’oeil ceiling.
The painting technique has captured lush scenery surrounding the mansion to make it appear to take on a third dimension.
The sprawling manor’s foundations date back to the time of William the Conqueror, who gifted the land to his brother Odo, though the building as it stands today dates mainly back to the 15th century.
Now there is even space for a landing strip, as outbuildings, gardens and ponds dot across the manor’s 110 acres.
Inside the manor are an abundance of period features including solid oak doors, antique ceiling beams and grand fireplaces, not forgetting its own pub, The Plough Inn.
Knight Frank’s estate agent added: ‘The oldest part comprises a fifteenth-century Wealden Hall House of timber framed construction with part-timber and part-colour wash elevations to the front.
To the rear there have been substantial twentieth-century additions in the Georgian style of brick construction, all under a tiled roof. The present owners have spent a lot of time, money and effort restoring The Moat to its original condition, including reinstating the moat which is a particular feature of this magnificent property.
The Plough Inn is a pub, next to a museum, inside a country house. It’s a unique opportunity to pull a pint in the comfort of your own home and enjoy the restored surroundings of a 15th century mansion. It stands alongside a variety of stage prop shop fronts inside the museum that include shops, hotels, restaurants and other village scenes
Wooden beams adorn the kitchen, which still appears modern and functional while staying true to the country house’s medieval routes. With its vast expanse of land, estate agents suggest part of the property could be used as ‘a landing strip or helicopter landing pad’
The vast drawing room has immediate access to the 100-acres of grounds that surround The Moat House. Its present owner bought up land to the north and east of the the property, so the estate closer resembled how it would have appeared in 1795
Set among the Benenden country house’s 110 acres of land are outhouses, walled gardens and ponds. The house stands alone with no neighbouring properties and boasts unbeatable views of the Weald. Security has been described as ‘immense,’ with heavy gauche steel railings and ditches throughout the property
‘The present owner has also tried to piece together the original estate as it was known in 1795, by buying further land to the north and east of the property, which has created an exceptional small estate.
‘Internally the property retains many of its original features, such as exposed ceiling and wall timbers, including a king post in the second floor main sitting room, and wide flanked stripped floors. There are ornate fireplaces, attractive brick and flagstone flooring to the ground floor, quality solid oak doors, cupboards and staircases and leaded light windows to the front elevations, as well as some Georgian style leaded windows to the rear.
“Situated to the north of the house and approached both from the main gardens and grounds as well as the secondary service drive to the west, is the unique car museum and associated buildings.
‘The inner walls of the museum have been painted to depict the village of Benenden and other Kentish scenes together with a variety of detailed stage props including shops, hotels, restaurants and other village scenes and crisscrossed with brick paved roads. In addition, there is an authentic fully equipped public house “The Plough Inn”, which forms a central feature to the museum.
‘The security at The Moat is immense, including alarms in the house and museum as well as heavy gauche steel railings and ditches throughout the property.’
Aside from the nine bedrooms, the house boasts a decadent dining room, five reception rooms, a kitchen/breakfast room, and four bathrooms.
The house is set in exquisite formal gardens and 110-acre grounds that comprise a walled garden, ponds, a lake, paddocks and woodland.